Colts Blog

Sanders' Impact

2006-10-27T17:47:00.000-07:00

Sanders' Impact Extends Beyond Statistics. The mention of the name brought immediate smiles. Not just to Colts cornerback Jason David, but to Colts cornerback Marlin Jackson, too. And to linebacker Gary Brackett . . . And to defensive end Robert Mathis . . .

The name: Bob Sanders.

As in, just what will it mean to have Sanders on the field? Well, quite a bit, that's what. And not just statistically, either.

"He's going to bring a lot to the defense," David said as the AFC South-leading Colts (6-0) prepared to play the AFC West-leading Denver Broncos (5-1) at INVESCO Field at Mile High Sunday at 4:15 p.m.

"He's not a guy who's going to go out and do too much talking. He's going to go out and lead by example. He's going to do what he's supposed to do."

"We're just going to feed off of that."

Mostly, David and other Colts defensive players said, what Sanders will do is hit.

A lot. And really, really hard.

"Bob will be Bob, doing what Bob does," Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney said, smiling.

"He brings an attitude, hard-hitting - the way he hits, it rubs off on everybody," Mathis said.

Sanders, a third-year safety and a Pro Bowl selection last season, has missed the last four games with a knee injury sustained in practice shortly after the Colts' Week 2 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars. He returned to practice this week before missing the last two days. Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said Friday it's uncertain if he will play against the Broncos Sunday.

Technorati Tag(s): Colts, Bob Sanders, Tony Dungy

Montae Reagor in Accident

2006-10-22T17:42:00.000-07:00

Montae Reagor won't be with the Colts Sunday when they play the Washington Redskins.

Reagor, an eight-year veteran defensive tackle, was involved in a car accident early Sunday afternoon near the Colts' 56th Street facility in Indianapolis. He sustained facial lacerations and as of 4 p.m., he was resting comfortably at Methodist Hospital.

He was accompanied by two team physicians.

Reagor was among seven Colts' inactive players Sunday. The others: Wide receiver Brandon Stokley, defensive tackle Dan Klecko, safety Bob Sanders, tight end Jerome Collins, linebacker Tyjuan Hagler, offensive guard Matt Ulrich.

Technorati Tag(s): Colts, Montae Reagor, Washington Redskins

Run Must Be Stopped

2006-10-20T17:33:00.000-07:00

The way Robert Mathis sees it, the answer is simple. The answer is not, as Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy is quick to tell you, newly-acquired Anthony "Booger" McFarland. It's not a change in scheme. Or philosophy. How do the Colts get teams to stop running so much against them?

Simple, Mathis said.

"It's the way it is till we stop it," the four-year veteran defensive end said as the AFC South-leading Colts (5-0) prepared to play the Washington Redskins (2-4) in the RCA Dome Sunday at 4:15 p.m.

The Colts' run defense, as has been the case much of the season, was a major topic as the team practiced this week at the Union Federal Football Center.

A week before the bye week, the Colts allowed 214 yards rushing in a 14-13 victory over the Tennessee Titans, and entering the game against the Redskins, the Colts are ranked 32nd in the NFL against the run.

The statistics have been repeated often this week. Last year, the Colts allowed 110.1 yards rushing per game. This season, they are allowing 166.1 yards per game, and in two games this season, the Colts have allowed more than 150 yards rushing in the first half.

On Tuesday, the Colts addressed the area by sending a second-round selection in the 2007 NFL Draft to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in exchange for McFarland, a defensive tackle and a starter in six of seven seasons since being the Buccaneers' first-round selection in the 1999 draft.

Technorati Tag(s): Colts, Anthony McFarland, Tony Dungy

Not A One-Man Solution

2006-10-19T14:07:00.000-07:00

Anthony "Booger" McFarland wanted one thing made clear: He's not a one-man solution.

He doesn't think people should consider him one. And he sure doesn't see himself that way.

"I'm not proclaimed as a savior - I'm not a difference-maker," McFarland said Wednesday, a day after the Colts acquired him in a trade with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a second-round selection in the 2007 NFL Draft.

"What I am is a guy who's going to work as hard as I can and try to do whatever they ask me to do. That's what I am."

McFarland, a defensive tackle, was a first-round draft selection (15th overall) by the Buccaneers in 1999. He played with Tampa Bay for seven seasons, starting for the last six. His first three seasons in the NFL, and his first two as a starter, he spent playing for Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy, then the head coach in Tampa Bay.

McFarland arrived in Indianapolis Wednesday, watched practiced Wednesday afternoon and likely will practice Thursday, Dungy said.

"We're happy about it," Dungy said Wednesday as the AFC South-leading Colts (5-0) prepared to play the Washington Redskins (2-4) at the RCA Dome Sunday at 4:15.

Technorati Tag(s): Colts, Anthony McFarland, Tony Dungy

Colts Good in Jacksonville

2006-09-27T13:49:00.000-07:00

The Colts showed resiliency and poise in holding off the Jaguars in Week 2 and remain on top for the AFC South. Now Indy (3-0) will need to keep its focus as it visits the New York Jets on Sunday (1 p.m. ET, CBS).

A letdown might be expected after an emotional win over a division rival, but the Colts realize that any lapse against a Jets team that is a surprising 2-1 could be costly.

"We have enough players who have been around here for a long enough time that they’re able to respond and focus on the upcoming opponent," quarterback Peyton Manning said.

Technorati Tag(s): Colts, Peyton Manning, New York Jets

Colts Looking Sharp

2006-09-18T10:38:00.000-07:00

Well two weeks in and the Colts are looking sharper than ever.

With the offense working efficiently, and with the defense creating chaos early, Indianapolis (2-0 in 2006) dominated throughout the 2006 home opener, taking a 14-point first-half lead en route to a 43-24 over the Houston Texans (0-2) in front of 56,614 on Sunday afternoon at the RCA Dome.

Manning completed passes to nine different receivers, finishing with his seventh career 400-yard game. Reggie Wayne and Marvin Harrison each had more than 100-yards receiving, with Harrison passing Art Monk into fifth place on the NFL’s all-time receptions list.

Technorati Tag(s): Colts, Marvin Harrison, Houston Texans

Vinatieri Hurt In Practice

2006-09-01T12:27:00.000-07:00

Adam Vinatieri the prized kicker of the Indianapolis Colts went down with an injury in last weeks practices. Apparently he went over on his non kicking foot while doing running drills at practive.

The Indianapolis Star is reporting he had a fracture in his non kicking foot.

He is listed as unlikely to be in uniform for the team's final preseason game Sept. 1 against Cincinnati.

If the Colts don't Vinatieri back for the start of the season, this will be a majour blow to the team. Let's just hope the injury isn't as bad as it sounds.

Technorati Tag(s): Colts, Fottball Betting, Adam Vinatieri

Preseason Hard to Gauge

2006-08-22T15:12:00.000-07:00

After eight seasons, theres one thing Peyton Manning knows absolutely certainly about preseason. Thats that theres very little you can absolutely know.

Manning, the Colts quarterback, said Tuesday the reality is that its very hard to gauge exactly where a team is during the preseason. A veteran player or a coach can get a feeling about how things are going to be when the regular season comes around, but its really that, Manning said: A feeling. A guess. The real judging can begin in two weeks, Manning said.

You try to have an idea, Manning said Tuesday afternoon as the Colts (0-2 in the preseason) began preparing to play the New Orleans Saints (1-1) in Jackson, Miss., Saturday at 7 p.m.

Technorati Tag(s): Colts, Peyton Manning

Jahmile Addae Hospitalized

2006-08-16T14:37:00.000-07:00

Colts safety Jahmile Addae became ill during practice and was taken to a hospital, where he was expected to undergo tests.

Addae, gave the Colts a scare when he became lightheaded. By the afternoon, coach Tony Dungy said Addae was feeling better and his vital signs had returned to normal.

"We're not sure what it was," Dungy said. "We don't think it was a blow to the head, and it doesn't appear of the cardiac nature, either."

Heat was not believed to be a factor, Dungy said. The morning temperature was 76 degrees and the humidity level was 52 percent -- far lower than the triple-digit heat index during the first three days of camp at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.

Technorati Tag(s): Colts, Jahmile Addae, Fottball Betting

Vinatieri Missed Practice

2006-08-15T11:31:00.000-07:00

Kicker Adam Vinatieri, the Indianapolis Colts' biggest offseason acquisition, missed practice with a sprained ankle.

Coach Tony Dungy said Vinatieri hurt his ankle while running, the same day the Colts cut Shane Andrus, the only other kicker on the roster.

"He did it in conditioning, and he's day-to-day," Dungy said.

Indianapolis signed Vinatieri, considered the NFL's best clutch kicker, to a five-year contract in March to replace Mike Vanderjagt. Vinatieri had two Super Bowl-winning field goals with New England.

Technorati Tag(s): Indianapolis Colts, Adam Vinatieri

Colts Coming Together

2006-08-14T11:33:00.000-07:00

Two weeks into training camp, defensive end Dwight Freeney returned to workouts after missing four practices with a sore shoulder, and safety Bob Sanders made his first appearance a day earlier.

The Colts still had no word, however, on the seriousness of an ankle injury wide receiver Brandon Stokley or whether defensive tackle Corey Simon will need surgery on his ailing left knee.

Freeney, a three-time Pro Bowler who had 11 sacks last season, was optimistic after practice Aug. 14.

Technorati Tag(s): Dwight Freeney, Brandon Stokley, Bob Sanders

Freeney Out Aug. 10

2006-08-09T11:34:00.000-07:00

Dwight Freeney will be one of six Indianapolis defensive starters sitting out the Aug. 10 preseason opener at St. Louis.

Freeney missed his second successive morning practice, and afterward coach Tony Dungy announced the Colts' three-time Pro Bowl defensive end would be kept out of the Rams' game for precautionary reasons.

Dungy said Freeney's shoulder, which forced him to sit out the morning session Aug. 8 and skip the final team scrimmage in the afternoon, was too sore.

"It's a precautionary thing," Dungy said. "He's not feeling well, he's not 100 percent."

Dungy hasn't said which shoulder Freeney hurt or whether it was the same shoulder that required minor surgery last year. Freeney declined interview requests Aug. 8 and was not available today.

By sitting out, Freeney would have three days to rest before the Colts return to practice Aug. 12. The Colts are scheduled to take Aug. 11 off.

Freeney certainly won't be lonely, though. The Colts issued a list of 14 players who are not expected to play against the Rams, and Freeney's name wasn't even on it.

Technorati Tag(s): Dwight Freeney, Colts

Freeney Sore Shoulder

2006-08-08T11:37:00.000-07:00

Three-time Pro Bowl selection Dwight Freeney joined the Indianapolis Colts ' rapidly expanding injury list, missing the morning practice after complaining of a sore shoulder.

Colts coach Tony Dungy said Freeney, the 2004 NFL sacks leader, was held out for precautionary reasons and was expected to have an MRI. Dungy downplayed the severity of the injury, calling it a strain that occurred over time rather than something that could be pinpointed to a single play or hit.

"It's something that's been bothering him, and it's our sense that he will be fine," Dungy said. "We just want to get it checked out. If it was a regular-season game, I'm sure he'd be out here practicing and playing."

Dungy was uncertain which shoulder Freeney hurt or whether it was the one that required minor surgery last year.

The mounting injuries, however, have forced Dungy and the Colts to make changes.